BRIDGEPORT -- Jon Sim enters his 16th professional season with 889 games that count toward the AHL veteran rule: games played in the NHL, AHL, the old International Hockey League, top European leagues.

Bridgeport had skill, grit, potential; it didn't have tons of experience until Sim signed a pro tryout Tuesday and practiced at the Wonderland of Ice.

"I still have the desire to play," said Sim, 36, who'd been skating with a junior team in Nova Scotia and coaching his kids' teams. "Back home in October, still training as hard as I did in August: It kept me going, knowing if I got an opportunity I'd be ready."

Sim, a Stanley Cup and Calder Cup champion, got that opportunity. It's his third stint with the Sound Tigers and a second go-'round with the New York Islanders organization, with whom he played three and a half years, 2007-11.

"We are a youthful team," coach Scott Pellerin said. "Having all his experience in the NHL, bringing that experience into the locker room -- and we're looking for his skill level and ability."

Sim had 23 points in 18 games with Bridgeport in 2008-09, then led the team with five points in five playoff games. He had nine points for the Sound Tigers in 2010-11.

In January 2011, Sim cleared waivers, and the Islanders assigned him to Bridgeport. A couple of days later, the two sides parted ways, and Sim went to Europe to finish that season and play the next.

"It was probably the hardest decision I had to make in my life," Sim said. "I had the opportunity to go overseas. Then, everyone thought it was a good opportunity for myself, and we took it. I still look back today, `what if.' I made the decision, and I have to live with it."

He won yet another championship in Berlin in 2012. But Europe, in the end, may not be perfect for a player like Sim, who can agitate with the best of them.

"It's a good spot, but it's not for everybody," Sim said. "My game's a North American style of game."

He started last year in San Antonio, then joined Adirondack, back in the Flyers organization, where he won the 2005 Calder Cup.

"I had some pretty good numbers," said Sim, who feels ready to go when the Sound Tigers play Hershey on the road on Saturday. "I'm looking forward to doing the same here, playing hard and playing well."

Though he didn't play with any of the current Sound Tigers here, he knows Bridgeport's coaching staff and equipment manager Leni DiCostanzo.

"For me, this was a great fit," Sim said. "I know a lot of people. They know me. I come to work every day."